Bad Romeo Christmas: A Starcrossed Anthology (Starcrossed #4)(41)

I walk over to examine it. The top is smooth, almost glassy, and there's an indentation leading off one side.

"Probably to drain all the blood," I whisper to myself like a total creeper. I've always been fascinated with the macabre. Guess that's what comes from reading a crapload of Stephen King and Dean Koontz while I was growing up.

I run my hand over the surface. It's cold, but the temperature isn't what makes me shiver. I'm tracing my fingers over the blood channel when I hear a noise over to my right. I look up into the trees to see if my friendly neighborhood spider monkeys have followed me, but the canopy is empty. Then, I hear the noise again and realize it's not coming from above.

My breath catches in my throat when I catch a glimpse of what seems to be a figure standing there, watching me, half obscured by a tree.

"Luis?"

There's only the outline of a head, but even in the dim light I know it's not Luis.

The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. "Whoever you are, I'm warning you, I've been trained to kill a man with my bare hands." Well, I've been trained to punch a man in the balls with deadly force, at least. Liam didn't get to the part where he transformed me into a walking weapon.

There's a hooting sound right above my head, and I glance up to see the monkeys also staring toward the mysterious figure. When I glance back, there's nothing there.

"Lost tourist?" I whisper to myself. "Or vengeful spirit?" Okay, that's too scary to contemplate, even for me.

With a tight whimper, I take off toward the beach as fast as I can, which isn't terribly fast considering my main form of exercise is walking to the fridge to get cheese.

I'm pushing through the last patch of bushes on the edge of the beach when a strong hand grabs my arm.

I scream and turn to see Luis's concerned face. "Miss Holt? Are you all right?"

"Luis! Were you just over near the altar?"

"No. There's a storm on the way, so I thought I should come get you. Why?"

"Nothing. I thought I saw someone in the forest."

He looks to where I've come from and frowns. "Well, we're the only people on the island right now, so I doubt it." He turns back to me. "Perhaps we shouldn't mention this to Alba. If she thinks you saw Espírito Vingativo, I'd never hear the end of it.” He pats my shoulder. “I'm sure you just saw a shadow. Sometimes the light plays tricks with our eyes in the jungle."

"Yeah, I guess."

As I go back to the beach and grab my towel and bag, there's a rumble of thunder from the dark clouds closing in on the island. "Sure. A shadow. That's all it was. No problem."

Except shadows don't disappear when they realize they've been seen.

???

By the time I finish up dinner, torrential rain is pelting the plate-glass windows as lightning carves up the sky.

"Maybe you should stay here tonight," I suggest as Alba cleans up. "You're going to get drenched if you try to go home in this."

"Oh, I'll be fine. My Luis will be here soon. He'll take good care of me."

We both jump when the back door bangs open, and Luis appears in head-to-toe rain gear. He looks like Captain Nemo if he'd still been on deck when the Nautilus submerged.

He slams the door behind him and stands in the back hallway, dripping onto the tiles. "Okay, so ... it's raining."

Alma laughs. "Really? We hadn't noticed. I'm almost ready to go."

"Actually, I came early to give Miss Holt some bad news." He looks at me with a regretful expression. "I was meant to pick up Mr. Quinn from the mainland an hour ago, but because of this weather, the helicopter is grounded until it passes. I'm sorry."

My heart sinks. "Have you spoken to Liam?"

"No. I tried to call, but I can't get through. As soon as the storm dies down, I'll try again. It seems we won't be able to collect him until tomorrow."

I sigh. Of course this would happen. We haven't seen each other for a quarter of a year, so it's not like I'm dying of anticipation or anything.

Goddammit.

I take a giant mouthful of wine and swallow, hard. "It's not your fault, Luis. Thanks for letting me know."

"No problem. If I find out more, I'll call you."

"Thanks."

I feel deflated. I thought I'd finally be going to bed wrapped around my gorgeous man, but it seems I'm soloing it, yet again. God, I'm so tired of sleeping alone.

After Alba and Luis leave, I grab my wine, head upstairs, and go into the obscenely large bathroom to run myself a bath. Might as well make the most of my alone time. I dig through the cabinets to find bath salts and candles, and when the tub is full, I strip off and sink beneath the bubbles. It feels so good, I moan.

As the warm water relaxes my muscles, I close my eyes and listen to the storm raging outside. Knowing my luck, this stupid weather will set in for days, leaving Liam stranded on the mainland for God knows how long.

I wish I could talk to him. He'll be just as disappointed about this as I am. Maybe more. After all, I haven't been the one filming in a frozen wasteland for months. I'm sure he's more than ready for a solid dose of sunshine.

Hearing the wind howl outside, I fear the sun may never shine again.